I Got The News Today (IGTNT), which is one of the oldest continuous series on Daily Kos, provides members of this community a venue to pay their respects to those who have died as a result of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan as well as in Operation Freedom’s Sentinel, Operation Inherent Resolve, Operation Resolute Support, Operation Joint Guardian and Operation Octave Shield. The IGTNT title is a reminder that far too often the family of an active duty service member receives the terrible news that their beloved has died.
The Department of Defense announced the deaths of two Airmen who were supporting Operation Freedom's Sentinel. They died January 27 in the crash of a Bombardier E-11A aircraft in Ghazni Province, Afghanistan. The cause of the crash is under investigation. Killed were:
Lt. Col. Paul K. Voss, 46, of Yigo, Guam. He was assigned to Headquarters Air Combat Command at Joint Base Langley-Eustis, Virginia.
Capt. Ryan S. Phaneuf, 30, of Hudson, New Hampshire. He was assigned to the 37th Bomb Squadron at Ellsworth Air Force Base, South Dakota. ~ DoD News Release
On Monday, January 27th their plane was flying between the southern city of Kandahar and Kabul when it went down. General Frank McKenzie, Commander of US Central Command stated: “I’m pretty confident there was no enemy action involved. Aircraft mishaps happen.”
A recovery team was dispatched to the crash site according to McKenzie: “The main resistance was from the weather, which was really significant back there.” Appropriate precautions were taken in moving the recovery team to the site “because the last thing you want to do is have another mishap or have other people lose their lives in attempt to get up there.” ~ News Source
On Tuesday, January 28th U.S. Navy Seals recovered the remains of the two Americans as well as the aircraft flight data recorder and destroyed the remnants of the aircraft.
U.S. Forces-Afghanistan spokesman Col. Sonny Leggett reported that "The remains were found near the crash site, treated with dignity and respect by the local Afghan community, in accordance with their culture." ~ News Source
Lt. Col. Paul K. Voss
Lt. Col. Voss was prior-enlisted and served a total of 25 years on active duty. He was commissioned
in November 2001 after graduating from Officer Training School. He was an 11M mobility pilot and his call sign was “Tabs”.
Prior to this deployment, which was a voluntary one for Voss, he was stationed at Langley-Eustis for 4 years serving as chief of exercises within the Air Combat Command’s directorate of operations. On this deployment to Afghanistan Voss was supporting the 455th Air Expeditionary Wing at Bagram. He was piloting the E-11A.
Having deployed in 2010 to Bagram with Voss, Jimmy Santos who was a senior airman serving as a tactical systems operator for the MC-12 program, described Voss as “down to earth, full of knowledge, and a phenomenal mentor”. He added that Voss’ sense of humor and leadership carried Santos through that deployment. ~ News Source
"It’s really hard to describe how sad we are at the loss of two great airmen. Lt. Col. Paul Voss was our brother and teammate. The men and women of our Air Force knowingly put themselves in harm’s way, and I’m thankful for great Americans like them. Our thoughts and prayers are with their family members and our fellow airmen during this difficult time.” ~ ACC commander Gen. Mike Holmes
“Our hearts are with the families & friends of Lt Col Paul K. Voss & Capt Ryan S. Phaneuf. The Air Force lost these two brave Airmen in their support of Operation Freedom’s Sentinel. Their service & dedication to our nation will always be remembered.” ~ Secretary of the Air Force, Barbara Barrett ~ News Source
“We send our heartfelt condolences to the families and friends of Lt Col Paul K. Voss & Capt Ryan S. Phaneuf, who lost their lives in an E-11A crash in Ghazni Province, Afghanistan. Let their legacy of service and ultimate sacrifice be an enduring example for each of us.” ~ General David L. Goldfein, U.S. Air Force Chief of Staff ~ News Source
Lt. Col. Paul K. Voss’ decorations included the Meritorious Service Medal, the Aerial Achievement Medal, the Air Medal, the Air Force Commendation Medal, and the Air Force Achievement Medal.
Capt. Ryan S. Phaneuf
Ryan Phaneuf was a 2007 Alvirne High School graduate where he was a member of the Junior Reserve Officer’s Training Corps. Bryan Robert Conant, JROTC Commanding Officer described Phaneuf as: “Smart, kind, hard worker, great student and person. He was an inspiration to many of us in JROTC.”
In a letter to the school ROTC community, his sister Christine Phaneuf Larsen wrote: “He was the proudest Airman you’ll ever meet and the absolute greatest brother/son/partner/friend anyone could ever wish for. Ryan got to live his dream and have a wonderful life as short as it was.”
Sadly, this was the second graduate tragedy to strike the Hudson community and High School in less than a week. A few days earlier the school learned that Katherine Thyne, a 2013 graduate of Alvirne High, died in the line of duty while working as a patrol officer in Newport News, Virginia. She died after being dragged by a car after a traffic stop when it crashed.
Capt Ryan S. Phaneuf graduated from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in 2012 with a B.S. in Meteorology. He then joined the Air Force in May of 2012 and was stationed at Laughlin AFB in Del Rio, Texas. It was there that he met his wife, Megan who was at the time the weekend meterolologist at KTSX news station. ~ News Source
Captain Ryan S. Phaneuf’s awards and decorations include the Air Force Commendation Medal, Meritorious Unit Award, Air Force Outstanding Unit Award, National Defense Service Medal and Global War on Terrorism Service Medal.
“This is a tragic loss to the Air Force and our Ellsworth family. Our thoughts and prayers are with the member’s family, friends and co-workers as we all come to terms with this tragedy. Every uniformed and civilian airman assigned to Ellsworth is a valuable member of our team and this airman will be greatly missed by all. Please respect the family’s privacy as we concentrate on caring for them and our team during this difficult time.” ~ Col. David A. Doss, 28th Bomb Wing commander ~ News Source
“My sincere thoughts and prayers are with the family of Capt. Ryan S. Phaneuf of Hudson, NH. Capt. Phaneuf made the ultimate sacrifice so that we may continue to live freely. All of New Hampshire, and America, mourns the loss of this great hero.” Governor Chris Sununu ~ News Source
I Got the News Today" is a series intended to honor, respect, and remind us of the sacrifices made by our US troops. Click here to see the series, which was begun by i dunno in 2004 and now is maintained by Sandy on Signal, i dunno, noweasels, blue jersey mom, Chacounne, twilight falling, SisTwo, SpamNunn, TrueBlueMajority, CalNM, Wide Awake in Kentucky, maggiejean, Ekaterin, Joy of Fishes, SARBill and me, JaxDem. These diaries are heartbreaking to write but are an important service to those who have died and allows our community to show respect for the fallen and express condolences to those who mourn them. These posts usually appear two days after their names are officially released, which allows time for the IGTNT team to find and tell their stories.
Please bear in mind that these diaries are read by friends and family of the service member(s) mentioned here. May all of our remembrances be full of compassion rather than politics.